The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-08-28
THE LAND OF WILLIAM TELL
How Mr.. Halford Was Impressed by Mont
Blanc, a Mule, and the Awful Guide.
Holiday at Geneva Which Presented Sugges-
tions of Similar Occasions at Home-Some
of the Sights of the French Capital.

On THE CONTINENT tSwitzerland), July, 1887.
-Chamounix is nothing like my preconceived
idea of it It 10 an ill-built village, running
down the winding main street that follows the
course of the narrow valley. which here almost
shuts you in. On one side the Mont Blanc range
overtowers you, and on the other the peak of the
Aguilles. There few breaks into side
streets, about q square or block In length, but
for the main part all there is of Chamornix is
the single street. with its eplastered houses
its magazines of views" and souvenirs, its
crowds of guides, its larger crowds of visitors
its hotels and its mules. -Four months Chamou-
nix is alive; eight months it is something else.
But it is at the foot of Mont Blanc, and il COM
ing into it you pass rather see. four great ga-
ciers-the Glacier de Tour, the Glacier de Ar
gentierre, the Glacier de Bots (which is the out
lot of the Mer de Glacel and the Glacier de Bos-
sons. Three OF these are in view at once from
either way you drive into the place, and the
beauty of the spectacle. with the summit of
Blanc stretching away. away, almost an inter-
minable distance into the clouds, cannot be de-
scrbed. At least, would not dare attempt it.
The Rhone is so hemmed in by the base OF the
mountains that it flows right under the houses,
under the hotels; there is not room enough to
give it free passage. Its ceaseless murmur. as if
fretted by its confinement, was the accompani-
ment to every meal, and it intruded into your
bedroom, lulling to sleep or exasperatinely
keeping you awake, just happened. 1t hap
pened the other way with me. The hour was 4
o'clock in the afternoon when we drove into the
yard of the hotel, and already the shadows were
creeping up the valley. But overhead it was
beautifully clear and the white brow of the
mighty mountain was bathed in sunlight A
perfectly distinct. unbroken view of the summit
was vouchsafed, as we'll as of the two other peaks
that stand out nearer and in bold relief and by
their impertinence not infreouently confound
you into mistaking one or the other for his
Imperial Majesty. However, when the real
summit is once we'll fixed in your eye and mind,
there is further trouble; the borrowed great
ness of the other peaks is short lived. and con-
fined entirely to the ''greenhorns."
In front of the little church Of the village
stands a monument to Jacques Belmot, the
guide who first assembled Mont Blanc, in 1885,
while in another street is huge block of gran
lite, unsculptured, except with the name de
Saussure," the great naturalist who explored the
mountain in 1887, and introduced it to the
world. About forty ascents of the mountain
made year, some of Them by women. The
day was there a party reached the summit.
and. as usual, the event was emphasized by the
firing of cannon. did not ascend Mont Blanc;
but mounted on mule, preceded by guide
and followed by another mule, upon whose back
a New York gentleman, whose acquaintance
was made en- route, made the climb up the
Flegere, from which the best view of the mount
ain is obtained, and from which, also, the Mer
de Glace can be satisfactorily explored, both by
the eye and the glass. An instantaneous photo
graph of that procession would be a real work of
art The excursion occupied between four and
five hours. It paid well. In addition to q
most glorious view Of Mont Blanc from its sum-
NIT to its foot including the several glaciers,
there were valuable and profound revelations of
the natures of both mules and guides. A mule
is mule; that's all there is about it, whether he
is i'm Chamounix or Indianapolis. and he is a
wise man who recognizes the fact and acts it.
The guide is only to be found in Chamounix:
but his counterpart is to be seen in the Bourbon
of whatever profession and when you add to
dense stupidity the virtue of understanding and
talking nothing but the outlanish gibberish of
this country, he is also wise man who accepts
his fate and says nothing. But despite mules
and guide. we had delightful day. and had
Mont Blanc photographed on the mind that
the picture will never leave it. The Flegers is
nearly g. 900 feet above the sea, if 1 remember
the figures correctly: but 5000 more feet up, up
into the eternal ether the great bosom of uu-
rifted snow pushed ITSELF now and again half
hidden by fleeing clouds. and then fully and
sharply revealed against the deep blue
It seemed proclamation that the foot of
man should tread that virgin field,
for as looked at it. and with half-shut eye and
dreamful gaze, the distance and the majesty
were both magnifed, it did not seem irreverent
to think of the Great White Throne itself, for
surely Deity would scarce be belittled by such a
dwelling-place. It is dull mind and heart in
deed that do not easily 60 from nature to natures
God in such place. The only fit suggestions
are those which Samuel Taylor Coleridge has
expressed in his poem, written at Chamounix,
but which, of course. could not obtain, but to
which the reader is respectfully referred. Days
are spent at Chamounix profitably in making the
various excursions; but to a man without back
or rather to with back, and mighty poor
one at that one day mule is enough. The
balance of it took on the hotel veranda, dis
lance lending enchantment to the view.
The ride from Chamounix to Geneva is only of
interest because it is made in real, sure-enough
diligence. The one the Brunig pass was a
mere stage coach. The simon-pure diligence
holds about thirty passengers, and is pulled by
from five to seven horses. three Or four abreast
in the lead and two or three at the pole. In
shape, it looks as if two of Frank Birds omni-
buses had been playing leap-frog and the
had stuck on the shoulders of the other The
driver and the guard sit on the front seat, with
two passengers between. The driver is changed
with the horses-seven times iu the trip of fifty
eight miles-but the guard goes through solid.
The principal duty of the guard is to reinforce
the driver in a continuance of cries and shrieks
to the horses-what for 1 could not see, except
that it is part of the performance and tends to
keep up the awful feeling of subsection to these
superior persons which is prevalent in and about
Chamounix. We started at half past o'clock,
and without other intermisson than to change
horses and to get bite of lunch at three prices,
the diligence went at rafting rate until it de-
livered US safe and sound on the Quai du Mont
Blanc, Geneva, at half past in the afternoon.
Geneva was il gala dress. II was the great day